Secret Love Affair

"So I'll see you tomorrow morning then?" I ask Dougie on my cell phone. I was alone, leaning on my dad's Mercedes, waiting for Mina and Arabella to pick Lena and me up from my dad's apartment by Leicester square. Lena was videotaping a group of guys skateboarding.

"Of course. Where are you?" Dougie asks me. He was talking to me in a janitor's closet at a mall. McFLY was doing an appearance there.

"Lena and I are my dad's place. We're waiting for Mina and Arabella to get back from buying bigger suitcases.

"So I can't see you today then?" Dougie asks hopefully.

"Sorry- I can't leave the sight of Arabella's eye. She's been jumpy and cranky lately. We leave tomorrow so..." I say, "I wish though."

"No that's alright..." He sighs, "I have the rest of the summer with you."

I laugh, "Alright then," I see Lena coming over, "Listen I got to go. Lena's coming."

"Okay...bye."

"Bye-"

"Hey Lara?" Dougie pipes up.

"Yeah?" he better hurry up.

"...Never mind. See you tomorrow."

"Okay. Bye." I hang up and smile at Lena.

"Hey who were you talking to?" she asks holding a skate board.

"Adrien." I roll my eyes and observe the cool deck.

"Oh you like it?" Lena asks showing me the designs on the board, "It belongs to a boy over there. I told them you liked to skate sometimes so we wondered if you wanted a try."

"How nice." I look over at the three guys in the middle of the parking lot doing tricks.

They looked pretty cool I guess. Two were about 17 or 18 and the last boy was about 8.

I walk over with Lena to the three boys, "Nice moves." I say observing them.

"Thanks." The tallest one said winking at Lena. I smile lightly at Lena. She doesn't notice. She's too busy checking out all the decks.

"Making sweet designs for skate and surf boards used to be a hobby of hers." I say.

"Wicked, you skate right?" The youngest asks.

"A bit."

"Wanna have a go?"

I think about it. Lena and I've been waiting for our ride for awhile now.

"Sure." I smile and he hands me a board.

"I'm Lara and she's Lena." I said introducing ourselves.

"Well hello Lara and Lena. We're Scotty, Matt and Steve." Scotty, the oldest one, said.

So Steve (middle one) hands me a board and they skate around doing tricks and such like that.

"Don't fall." Lena smiles.

I laugh and skate around the parking lot, gaining speed so I could do some ollies every now and then.

Ten minutes later, and Lena videotaping me, I found a rail.

I thought about jumping on it.

Hmmmm...I haven't done this in a while though.

I stop moving and think about it.

"Don't even try that rail!" Lena laughs, "You said you broke your wrist in tenth grade!"

"Haahahaaahaha! That was a funny little accident!" I laugh and go for the rail.

So yeah in tenth grade, I decided to go down that long rail on a hill of a street in San Francisco. And I almost ran into a hobo so I messed up and fell, thus breaking my wrist.

"You're not going to make it!" Lena says.

"Shit she's going to do it! Hotness." Someone says.

"Shut up Lena!" I say and did a little ollie. I naturally found my balance and next thing I know I finished the small rail and glided perfectly onto safe cement with a thud.

"I know I had it in me." I say to myself.

"Wow! We didn't know some rich girl like you could do that. We thought you liked shopping and small dogs." That boy named steve said.

Scotty punched him in the arm. He is apparently the mature one.

I smile, "See I didn't fall!" I said to Lena who was shutting the camera off.

"Yeah I guess you didnt." She laughed.

"No- You KNOW I didn't!" I smile.

"So Lara, when do you want to go out?" The little eight year old named matt smirked looking up at me.
I looked down on him.

How’s the weather down there?

"You know I'm old enough to be your babysitter." I smile and hand the board back to steve.

"That didn't stop Ashton and Demi." Matt licked his lips. Steve and scotty groan in embarrassment.

Lena and I laugh loud and shake our heads.

Arabella and Mina pull up in a taxi. The driver honks the horn.

"Give me a call when you're allowed in night clubs." I say and walk off with Lena.

As we're getting in the car, Scotty (who looks like Andy from Short-Stack) calls after us, "Hey! I think you're hot Lena!"

I giggle uncontrollably as Arabella and Mina look at us oddly, "Thankyou!" Lena says, "You're pretty cute too!"

And we drive off.

"How come you didn't exchange numbers?" I ask

"Because..."Lena says smiling and blushing.

"Oh! She LURVES Danny Jones!" Arabella laughs.

"Hello?" A man answers.

"Uh...hi. Jim?" I ask. Why is HE at my mom's house...at 5 in the morning?!

The house is in California. Its 1pm here already.

I bet adrien is pissed off in his sleep right now.

"Yes who is this?" he asks.

"Uh Moms daughter- Lara." I say. I roll my eyes as Lena, Mina and Arabella giggles at me as they pack their suitcases.

I was packing mine too. My clothes were everywhere but in the suitcase.

"Oh hi Lara.I though you knew how early it is here in San Francisco?"

"I do know but usually my mom is up by 4:30 getting ready for the day, This is the only time I can talk to her and right now, I need to see what time she'll be picking us up at the airport when she gets in New York this afternoon."

"Well I'm sorry Lara she's still in bed. Can I leave a message?"

Leave a message?! I'm not some client!

"Just tell her I called." I say. We hang up and I plop on the bed.

"Jim invaded your palace again?" Arabella asked folding my clothes.

"Yes." I mumble.

"At least she's happy." Mina said.

"Yeah but Adrien's feelings toward him rubbed off on me!"

"At least he doesn't order you around yet." Lena said.

"He tried already." Arabella laughs.

"Oh yeah! He tried and my mom’s dog fluffy didn't like that. There’s a nice mark on his thigh.

"His thigh? Gross!" Mina said thinking about a mans' hairy leg.

Yeah- I know...

"Yeah he was wearing a horrific man Speedo. Adrien and I were nearly blinded that summer."
I finish packing my wrinkled belongings and throw them unorganized in my suitcase- much to Mina's dismay.

She's a bit of a neat freak.

"Wanna go with me to check out my new apartment and drop off my things?" I ask making sure I leave out an outfit and essential materials for tomorrow.

"Yay new crib tour!" Arabella says excitedly.

She loves going into new homes. Like she'll open up all the cabinets and inspect all the bathrooms....just like any other ordinary person who is like Lara Keating.

"Look at that chav!" Mina says putting her face up against the taxi window and looking outside.
She's been picking up on all this British slang and such like that lately. We look at the passing boy smoking, decked out in fake Burberry. He gave us the middle finger. I returned the lovely gesture and sat back in my seat.

"Oh my, he's abusing Burberry!" Arabella said in agony.

"Oh no it’s the end of the world!" I say and pat her arm to let her know it was okay and twenty minutes later, we arrived at these very private, exclusive, large apartments.

Gosh this place makes my old apartment look like a garage!

"Dad said it was in building B room number 320 on the fifth floor." I said getting out the key Lena and I picked up earlier.

I trailed my heavy suitcase behind me full of clothes I've already worn twice during my stay.

The wheels on the suitcase made gravel noises as we walked onto the cement.

And why is no one helping me?

Lena was getting her videotape set, Mina was just walking and Arabella was getting a kick out of me straining to pull the heavy thing along!

And she calls herself my best friend!

Pft!

Well...I should shut up because I would do the same thing....

"Oh I'm nervous." I mumble in the elevator.

"I'm nervous for you." Arabella says.

Swiping on lip gloss is a sign of nervousness?

We walked down a cool hallway that had beige walls and smelled like vanilla.

"318,319...320!" Lena smiles at the black door with gold numbers.

I'm excited yet nervous.

I'm hungry yet I want to throw up.

I'm tired but I keep jumping around.

I got to use the girly room yet I...don’t want to use the girly room...lord help me...

My first apartment alone all by myself. All grown up.

Mommy dearest would cry.

I unlocked the door and we heard a small click.

I slowly open the door and the first thing I see is my dream living room that would be home away from home.

I heard a pretty harp and saw clouds move to reveal the room in my head...I'm weird.

"You are one spoiled-lucky brat." Mina whispers in aw as we look at my new apartment.

"Dad never told me it was one of those huge...celebrity like apartments." I say faintly as I was walk in.

"Don't rub it in." Arabella says.

I was fine with a small, simple one but I guess my dad decided to put me in the land of luxury.

"Never mind coming back this fall! Stay here!" Lena said pushing me in.

"Wow." I say still a little shocked. After 5 minutes of standing there, just letting the hallelujah or however you spell it play in my head, I do this little jump, clap my hands like a child, shriek a bit and start running around my new home looking at everything.

I went straight to the kitchen and started opening up all the cabinets.

Lena was screaming something about a flat screen TV and Mina went straight to check out the two bedrooms.

"Full stock of Rockstars! Sweet!" Arabella laughs. She rarely says sweet. That means she likes it. I slam down the cool square black plate I was examining like a monkey and I poked my head in the fridge like Arabella.

"Sweet!"

Lena found the sound system and began playing the Pink Spiders. She danced around and began filming the place.

I sat on the counter with Arabella, "This place is fabulous!" She said.

"I know right? But I don't like that Rolling stones picture...we'll have to get rid of that..." I say looking around.

We were waving at the camera Lena held and next thing I know, I hear mina scream and I'm on the floor of the kitchen because I fell.

"Ow..." I say as Arabella helps me up.

"God she found the closets." Lena muttered as we went to this really cool bedroom. It was a room full of reds and black.

"This is so my bedroom times ten!" I say jumping on the bed that was sort of like a couch but larger.

"Forget the bed! It’s the closet!" Mina says dragging me to my closet.

"Whoa." Arabella says and leans on a wall for support. I'm afraid she might do one of those dramatic feints that the ladies used to do when they couldn't breathe in corsets.

Someone please pinch me! This must be a dream.

London's a dream.

Dougie's a dream.

This apartment that I don't deserve is a dream!

I bang my head on a wall, "Ow." I mutter and blink twice.

Arabella, Lena, and Mina and their moving in and out of focus twins look at me weird.

"No...Its not a dream." I say rubbing my head.

LaLa Land airlines departs in two minutes!

So I get a huge two bedroom apartment with a flat screen TV, a cool job, and a hot guy who is an unbelievably good kisser.

Life is good.

"Damnit Lara! That closet is bigger than my kitchen!" Lena says.